the last word

montana – august 2015

When I left Washington, I headed north over the Canadian border into beautiful British Columbia – the final stop on my tour of the Pacific Northwest. I was sorry to leave, and it was right about this time that I started to laughingly call this my farewell tour. I’m not sure, but this might be my last road trip. Perhaps I got it out of my system … I still want to travel, but I’m going to give myself over to buses and trains, at least for the foreseeable future.

And I don’t think a bus trip to the Pacific Northwest is what I have in mind, so I feel like I am saying farewell to my friends and family out here. But we hardly see in each other nowadays, so it’s not that painful. More joyful in fact, getting to catch up and spend quality time together.

All this to say, the first two weeks of August was people time. I never took my camera out once to snap a mountainscape or beautiful sunset – but lots of photos of friends and family, in both British Columbia and its neighboring province, Alberta, where I spent time with my brothers and their families.

Directly south of Alberta over the American border is Montana, and I am delighted to be here. If you’ve been following the book story so far, you’ll know that Virginia City, Montana, is the setting for book 3 in the trilogy. And I’m here to do research for about 10 days.

First stop is Helena – the state capital, and home of the state archives, where I spent a few days doing research – a lot on Thomas Francis Meagher, who was the acting governor of the Territory of Montana in the late 1860s and plays a big part in my book. I won’t give away anything, but Meagher was quite a character, somewhat larger than life, and I am delighted that I get to write about him. To remind everyone just how much larger than life he really was, after his death, his wife paid for and had installed a statue of him in front of the State House. He looks rather imposing, brandishing his sword sitting high on his horse.

A few hours south of Helena lie the two towns of Nevada City and Virginia City, deep in the dusty bits of Montana. Back in the 1860s, gold was found in them thar parts, and Virginia City became the capital of Montana for a time. It was a lively city back then, as were all the settlements along Alder Gulch, and it’ll be a great story to tell. Today, the two towns are tourist destinations – the Old West on display, and I availed myself of walking tours of both.

I was in Nevada City on a Sunday, in time for an afternoon re-enactment of a tale from the town’s history – a vigilante lynching – that was played out along the dusty streets amid the old buildings of the time. Before the re-enactment, I had time to stroll among the buildings and visit with some of the people, who of course were in character the whole time.

I spent most of my week doing research at the libraries in Virginia City and nearby Ennis, and got a chance to meet with a local historian and a native Sioux, both of whom shed a little light on me. There is such a rich (no pun intended) history here to tell. I’m not wishing my life away, but I’m looking forward to the day I start writing it. Ireland first, though, right?

2 thoughts on “montana – august 2015”

Hi Betty! I have left Ecuador – and made my way back to New Hampshire, in time to get my taxes done. Next stop, Ireland … my ticket is bought, and I fly to Shannon at the end of May. The journey continues! I am thoroughly enjoying your stories from the road and really appreciate the quality information you give us. Happy trails! ~ shannon